Chapter 57 - Taking Chances
The start of October saw Albus Dumbledore stroll into the offices of the Daily Prophet with head held high and twinkle on full blast as he asked for a word with the Chief Editor. When asked if he had an appointment, he was startled. He was Albus Dumbledore. That was enough.
The rude girl didn't understand this obvious truth and made him wait while she sent a message to her boss, letting him know who was out there. When the Chief Editor saw his receptionist enter his office, he knew something was up.
"Chief, the Albus Dumbledore is out there and he wants to talk to you."
"Did he say what he wanted to speak to me about?"
"No, nor did he want to make an appointment, neither."
"Very well, he can wait while I finish checking the copy for the International News section." The section was one of the ones that increased in size since the change in ownership. The old owner had had no interest in that foreign rubbish, in his words. The new ones had business dealings overseas so they wanted accurate and timely news delivered. They had had to hire extra staff to go roving but it was worth it. Sales were up since they had started reporting on all the crazy stuff those foreigners got up to, and the owners were happy, too.
Fifteen minutes later, he finished his second read through and put down the proposed copy, along with his notes, and sent them off to the reporters in the foreign division before sending for Dumbledore.
Albus was displeased at having to wait so long but resolved that he was above such petty concerns.
Voldemort was more important.
"Ah, Mr Dumbledore, you wanted to see me?"
"Yes, I was looking to tell the Wizarding World some important news so where else would I turn?" After all, didn't the Daily Prophet claim that it was the best source of news for the Wizarding World, or was that of the Wizarding World. Come to think of it, the front page had been changing over the last little while.
"Thank you for your kind words, Mr Dumbledore, but our circulation only covers Britain in practice. Frankly, until we came under new ownership with their new standards, we were the laughing stock of the world journalistic community. The old owners simply ignored this and we got tired of telling them. The result is that despite years of work to improve standards, we still aren't trusted by foreign wizards. Our overseas sales reflect that.
"There are at least a million wizards and witches worldwide, not including however many other sentient magicals are around. Our readership reaches around one percent of that on a good day. All but a handful are right here in Britain. The rest are British expatriates or foreign governments looking to keep an eye on us."
At Dumbledore's barely visible shock, the Chief gave a sad smile. "As much as I would like to say otherwise, if you want people outside of Britain to know immediately, we are not the paper you want."
Dumbledore had imagined a number of excuses that the Daily Prophet might use to deny him but this was never one of them. "Ah, well, that may perhaps not be the barrier you imagine it to be. I am sure once this story breaks that other worthy publications will take it up. You see, Voldemort has returned."
The Chief shuddered at the name, remembering the fallen and glared at the ancient wizard for doing it. He had been getting better about the fear since he was finally allowed to publish real stories. The habit of daring the minor Dark Wizards and criminals' wrath by publishing their crimes had bolstered his courage. He hated the proof that he was still afraid of a Dark Lord long dead.
"Hang on, you mean to tell me that He has returned? When? How?"
"Oh, at the conclusion to the Third Task of the Triwizard Tournament, probably using a ritual involving the sacrifice of a baby. Anyway, you see why I am confident the others will publish, yes?"
"You only just found out about it now?"
"Oh, no, I found out that very night, now, about the story-"
The Chief was outraged but long experience dealing with Rita Skeeter allowed him to keep it from his face. 'Oh, you'll get a story, alright. You have had this knowledge for four whole months and you didn't tell a soul?!' he thought to himself as Dumbledore kept talking.
"-I was thinking that the front page would be appropriate, with follow-up articles, lots of publicity-"
"Excuse me, Mr Dumbledore, I will be fine deciding the treatment of this story to do it full justice. It is my job, after all." 'My duty as a good citizen, too, to expose you. What a wonderful day when I do well out of doing good.'
"Of course, forgive me. Now, as I was saying-"
"I was not finished, Mr Dumbledore. Now, the Daily Prophet is not the kind of rag that will publish any old thing. We do need reasons to put things in the paper, here."
Albus cursed to himself. 'I knew it. He wants money just like that idiot Cornelius.' "I am afraid I do not have much on me but I could be back from Gringotts in no time."
The editor's eye twitched in response to the blatant bribe attempt. "Not those kinds of 'reasons,' sir. I mean reasons for people to believe the story. A good argument, a sighting, some evidence. You know this story will cause a panic and as a responsible journalist it is my job to make sure what we publish is true. I will not risk my job for an old man's nightmare." He would not normally have taken a jab like that but the man was pushing all his buttons today. He couldn't accept the bribe under his new employment contract and being offered it only further irritated him, not that he was sure he would even accept one anymore if he could. Self-respect was worth a lot more to him than he had expected after those years without it.
Albus smiled. It was refreshing to see someone who turned down a bribe. It made doing business much cheaper. "I assure you, I have investigated the matter and I am sure that it is true."
"How do you know? More to the point, why should anyone believe you that any wizard could have returned from the dead? It was you who assured this very office that he was gone in '81 and now you are saying he is back."
"I am Albus Dumbledore."
"Yes, I know your name."
"Then you know that I am the most powerful wizard alive."
"That may be true, sir, but it does not let you dictate to this paper! First you try to bribe me, then you threaten me when I am trying to do my job. I should report your threats to the Department of Magical Law Enforcement. For that matter, I am sure that the Minister would be interested that the Chief Warlock sees fit to threaten us."
"No, my good man, you misunderstood me. That was not my intention at all." Albus replied. "I was pointing out that my expertise is unquestioned."
"Then let me question it. Firstly, were you lying back in '81 when you assured everyone that he was gone or were you lying when you told me he was back. Wizards can only come back from the dead as ghosts."
"He did not entirely die that night, a point I tried to make in this office on that occasion." That was how he remembered it and his Pensieve confirmed it. "A Dark Arts ritual was used to give him a body, one that used young Harry as an ingredient. It was only through great good fortune that the Boy-Who-Lived returned to us to give me the warning."
"And Harry Potter will confirm this story of yours?"
"Naturally. The boy is a living symbol of hope. I am sure he will do the right thing." Dumbledore was sure that as the boy grew up, he would forgive the old man for everything. Any child of sweet Lily Evans could do no less. In his mind, the argument from the boy's first year was just a childish temper tantrum, something that he would outgrow over time.
"If you mean he will lie for you, that is useless to me. Now. What evidence can you bring to support your claim? For that matter, have you brought it to the Ministry's attention?"
"I have given you my evidence. I have investigated the matter, tracking down rumours from across Europe."
"So far, all I have is the word of my former Headmaster to go by. That is far from enough. If Harry Potter turns up, I will be happy to interview him, however I am pretty sure that was not what he said happened. What about the Ministry? Surely with it under the new management by the fearless Madam Bones, you can trust it to do the right thing." He smiled nastily at the trap he had laid for the old coot.
"Madam Bones is a redoubtable witch but she was not the best candidate for the job. That was why I placed my support behind Mr Diggory, you understand."
"I understand, Mr Dumbledore." And he understood all too well. Rather than go to the Ministry which might be able to do something, he was intending to rouse public opinion to force the Ministry to act.
Dumbledore took the statement as agreement to put the story in and took his leave, sweeping out of the office, his yellow, purple and hot pink robes making sure he caught the attention of everyone he passed.
The next issue of the paper carried an article, all right. In blazing letters, it asked "IS DUMBLEDORE PAST IT?"
Below that, it carried an account of recent events. It started with the forced inclusion of an underage student into a dangerous competition and Dumbledore failing to act to protect the student or to realise that his old friend was an impostor. It also reminded readers of his failures in previous years such as the debacle involving Sirius Black. The Pureblood wizard had ended up effecting his own escape from Azkaban because Dumbledore and Crouch never bothered to check if he had done the crimes or not.
The Basilisk was particularly damning, painting him as caring more about solving an intellectual puzzle than safeguarding his students. That year also saw him hire that notorious rake and fraud, Gilderoy Lockhart, putting the unscrupulous wizard in close contact with hundreds of vulnerable children.
At no time did the Headmaster call in the DMLE for assistance and the article mentioned reports that he had fought tooth and nail against their presence.
The picture painted was of a man more concerned with being respected than with the interests of the students or anyone else under his control. The article mentioned that the wizard had visited the Daily Prophet in order to plant a story about the return of You-Know-Who from death while having no evidence or witnesses for his outlandish claim.
"When challenged, he admitted he had no intention of going to the Ministry first, citing that his candidate had not secured the election. The obvious implication is that under Minister Bones the Ministry would not bend the knee to the powerful wizard. He also had no explanation for the treasonous delay in reporting this supposed threat to our world."
In short, the Chief Editor had fired the first shots in a war against the credibility of the Chief Warlock.
Naturally, the article put Harry firmly in the spotlight again.
Every student wanted to hear his side, which was admittedly better than jumping to conclusions about what he would have said if asked. To each of them, he replied that while he had seen a couple of shady characters that night, there was no way he could claim that 'that terrorist' was there when he escaped the kidnapping attempt.
The following day brought the Ministry's official response; they will investigate the allegations as soon as Dumbledore provides anything to investigate. "Vague statements unsupported by facts have no place with this Ministry. We will not be bullied into being afraid of the Dark. The Dark will be afraid of us."
Privately, they knew he was back, but they had too little evidence to convince a manifestly unwilling public of the matter so each side was using the time to prepare for the conflict ahead. Amelia and her hand-picked team of Aurors were digging through the archives. They were looking both for evidence of corruption now that she had a free hand at last, without Fudge or Bagnold obstructing her, and for any traces of dealings with Death Eaters.
Any of the latter demanded further investigation but it was slow going as so many people, otherwise good wizards and witches in some cases, appeared to have cooperated or looked the other way. This was little surprise. In the final months before Riddle made his fateful trip to meet the Potters, there was a palpable fear that anyone could be a Death Eater and kill or torture you without warning. When the murderers did show up, that fear had done a lot of their work for them, making people work with them to buy their own safety.
Given that, justice demanded that they get full information before attempting to prosecute anyone for actions so long ago. The real point of the exercise was to identify risks and actual Death Eaters or other threats within the Ministry.
The whole effort was getting bogged down by the filibustering from the Wizengamot or at least that large portion of it that was still on the take in an effort to delay or outright stall the Minister's attack on corruption that she had promised. If they managed to do that, managed to make her look incompetent or weak, they would remove a lot of her power over them if she ever moved against them. It could be made to look as just more political infighting rather than a true attempt to clean up the Ministry.
Amelia Bones had kept a close eye on the DMLE when she became Minister for one reason. At the time, the normal succession would have put Scrimgeour in her old place. Unfortunately, that would have been promoting him beyond his competence and Amelia had wondered over the years if he was as clean as he appeared. The man was more concerned with appearances than Amelia preferred, plus she already had reservations about leaving him as Head of the Auror Office. Instead, she opted to promote the Head of the Magical Law Enforcement Patrol to take her place as Director of the DMLE, someone whose integrity she trusted even as they butted heads from time to time.
Rufus Scrimgeour took the decision poorly at first, complaining to her that it was his promotion because he was Head Auror. Thankfully for all concerned, he had made his complaint in private. Instead of being forced to fire the man, Amelia was able to talk him through part of her thought process.
"Riddle is out there, and so are all those Death Eaters he broke out of Azkaban. With so many threats, we cannot afford to leave you behind a desk instead of taking down the bastards. As Head Auror, you can direct and lead the raids, while as Director of the DMLE you spend your days behind a desk. Britain needs you right where you are, doing what you do best, Rufus, not wading through reports and counting Knuts as you try to balance the Department budget."
He nodded reluctantly. Paperwork was the bane of every good Auror, that was the position of all the ones who wanted to make a difference, the ones respected the most, although he didn't find paperwork as horrible as his fellows. Still, he was a good leader of men, that was why he had been promoted ahead of older Aurors to the position, and he took satisfaction in a job well done.
"You know me, Rufus. You know that the real job is taking out all those who make life more difficult for everyone, and you are good at that job. I am not going to make your life harder by looking over your shoulder every time you make one of the tough choices, or make you fight the Dark with one hand behind your back like that fool Fudge did to us whenever one of his 'good friends' asked a favour. I am reworking the budget, looking to boost the support for the Aurors. As their Head, that means I am still on your side."
Amelia hated having to say it like that, but it had the virtue of being true even if it made her feel dirty to convince someone that they were better off not being promoted.
At Hogwarts, Minerva McGonagall was taking applications for 'unspecified positions', looking for replacements for Professor Binns and of course, for one Severus Snape. She neither trusted nor liked the man but without a replacement lined up, she felt it would be unfair to the students to leave them without lessons in Potions. Best to make sure that when Snape crossed the line, she was there with a solution.
An obvious interim measure for the problem of Snape was to look at well known potion brewers, starting with Horace Slughorn who had been the previous Potions Master. While the man was congenial to others, it was also true to say that he did this because it worked to his benefit. A selfish man who adored his comforts, he also craved power and influence over the movers and shakers in society. Reluctantly, for she had no desire to allow the man's "Slug Club" to have meetings in the school, she had sent out an owl with a letter requesting a meeting.
Old Sluggy, as he was known to his younger friends, had agreed on condition that she host him at the castle for the 'fine dining'. Minerva had snorted at that, now thoroughly acclimatized to the newer and more varied types of food served by the Clan. 'Now there was fine dining,' she thought to herself.
Putting down his letter, inked on an absurdly expensive piece of parchment, she noted, she looked up as the gargoyle informed her that she had a visitor. Albus had never informed anyone quite how he knew who was at the stairs below his office, preferring instead to leave it a mystery, or playing mind games that he had a password based on various sweets. It was nothing of the sort. The gargoyle that stood sentry also had an enchantment to inform the Headmaster or -mistress via the wards whenever someone was waiting.
She gave permission for the wizard to come in, quickly tidying away her papers as he rode the stairs up and knocked on the door. "Come in." Minerva called and stood for her guest.
"Please, do sit down." McGonagall invited and returned to her own chair.
"Thank you, Headmistress." The wizard smiled suddenly. "Does that sound as odd to you as it does to me?" His chuckle was rueful. "I like the sound of it, mind you, but I never expected that Dumbledore would leave Hogwarts, not while he was still breathing I mean."
Minerva nodded. "It came as a surprise to all of us, the way it happened."
"So what can I do for you, Professor McGonagall?"
"I was wondering if you would be interested in joining the staff here. The increase in intake has meant more work to do, as well as the flexibility in the budget to hire on new staff."
"And what would you want me to do here?"
"To be honest, I can see you helping in a number of ways if you desired. While you would be overqualified for the position of caretaker, that would allow me to remove Filch, something that would please almost everyone. What I would prefer to do is to hire you to be our new History Professor. In recent years, I have come to understand that while a ghost holds a certain appeal as a teacher of history, in practice it leaves a great deal to be desired. Professor Binns fails to meet even that low standard because, well..."
"He puts his class to sleep and gets details wrong even on the small section of history he chooses to teach?"
"Exactly."
"I think my only complaint is that this opportunity comes too late to help my own children learn more of the history of the world. Are you sure that you can get my appointment through the Board?"
"As recent years have shown, the Board do not have the kind of power over the school that they can interfere in the day to day running of it and they told me after the last meeting that they wanted to see some change."
"Yes, I can see that but we both know that there are many who will object to a Muggleborn like myself taking any position at Hogwarts let alone History Professor."
"Let me handle that, Mr Ashworth. Do we have an agreement?"
"Please, call me Rorie, Professor. I would like to discuss this with my wife and the Foundation, naturally, but right now I see no reason why I could not accept."
"It was your boss at the Foundation who recommended you when I asked them for any candidates for this post. I feel certain they will have no objections." Minerva assured him. "I look forward to working with you."
The pair discussed working conditions and pay and other essential details over tea, allowing Minerva a chance to evaluate the man before her. He was honest and blunt about the failings of the school but that wasn't a bad thing in itself. She needed to know when things went wrong in order to be able to fix them and Ashworth seemed prepared to do just that. His file sent over from the Lily Potter Foundation indicated he was generally honest and cynical, but willing to put in extra effort if he felt it would be rewarded. He had taken well to the incentive scheme provided by his current employers, outperforming other employees and taking advantage of their further education opportunities to improve himself further.
Minerva hoped that his wife, a Halfblood from Gryffindor who she remembered as a freckled blonde First Year, all knees, would not stop one of the most needed reforms to Hogwarts short of replacing the Potions Master. And while she was hoping, she might as well go ahead and hope that Horace would accept the position.
Job opportunities were on Lavender's and Parvati's minds that weekend when Jennifer and the other 'new' Cranleigh girls were teleported to the castle for their regular party and catching up.
"Jennifer!" they cried in unison and quickly dragged the girl to a corner, grinning. "Please help us! You have got to teach us how to model! Please?"
She giggled at their enthusiasm and nodded. "I don't mind, girls, but it isn't as easy as it looks. Really, that is the whole point so that the audience can concentrate more on the clothes than on the girl wearing them."
They nodded ruefully. "We found that out the hard way. I had no idea heels were so tricky. You make them look effortless. I am quite jealous." Lavender smiled and hugged Jennifer. "When I first put them on, I tried a pair of two inch heels and went flat on my face!"
Jennifer winced and instinctively checked her friend for injuries, smiling when it was clear nothing had scarred her pretty face. "They take some getting used to, I know. I thought I could handle it when I first started out modelling but I had trouble, and I have been wearing them for years. You're lucky you didn't twist your ankle, especially as it was your first pair. "
"So will you help us?"
"Of course, girls. Is this for Harry?"
"Not just for him. I have been thinking of going into it as a career, we both have, a way to bring fashion in the Wizarding World into the modern era at last." Lavender was happy to explain more to an amused Jennifer, Parvati chipping in with her own suggestions whenever there was a break.
"Alright, enough." Jennifer giggled ten minutes later as the pair wound down. "We can do all of that in time, but only if you put in the work. Let's see what you can do, ok?"
The girls did their best but they all knew they were just starting. When Jennifer gave her own walk down an imaginary catwalk, they could see the difference that skill and experience made. One advantage of their training under Harry was that they had become better observers, noticing in all sorts of ways how their tutor was moving her body to display herself and her clothes to their best advantage.
In the end, Jennifer offered to let them observe her fashion shoots and to train their clones each week in exchange for a good word with Harry. Since the deal was to everyone's advantage, they quickly agreed and gave her hugs in thanks.
Jennifer called over Lauren, Jessica, Amanda and Nicole, who were also interested in the idea.
"I love knowing I have Harry's clothing, it's like walking around with his hands everywhere on me," Lauren confessed, blushing.
"I want the real thing." Amanda added. "I know why he wants to wait, to make sure we know what we want and are willing to stay-"
"-especially after Megan left us-" Nicole added, frowning.
"-right, but we, all of us, we're ready." Amanda barely held back a pout. 'It's not fair, the way he's immune to all our tricks!' She knew why his parents had trained him for that, and she would much rather her boyfriend not be tricked by some hussy! But it did make getting him to bend for her harder than she was used to.
Harry caught their glance and sighed. He had been trying to find the perfect moment but it looked like he had forgotten that one of his parents' lessons applied equally well off the battlefield as on it.
"Make your own moment." That was what Yuugao-mum had told him when he had waited too long to ambush a patrol, letting them stumble over his presence. He had fought his way clear from the simulated patrol but it was messy and they nearly got lucky. The next time he encountered a similar scenario, he had those words burned in his mind and waited until things were close to what he wanted rather than exactly as he wanted. It paid off.
It would pay off here, too. Already, plans were going through his mind on how to create the right moment for his lovely Jewels. As he thought, he also realised he had forgotten one of the other lessons: "Don't stop examining your environment, including your assumptions."
The week had been a good one for Amelia. She had managed to get that idiot Bagman to confess before the Wizengamot that he had been gambling with the goblins and racked up a debt to the surly creatures. Gambling with goblins was bad enough but having one of their own in debt to the untrustworthy little things was quite beyond the pale for the rather conservative members. Not only was it bad form but it risked giving them ideas about exerting some sort of control over proper wizards.
Bagman had resigned in disgrace within a week.
Sadly, that's where the good ended. She had removed one corrupt idiot from the Ministry but now three more were competing to have his job. And across the Ministry, workers were slowing from their already snail's pace to positively glacial.
The way that nearly fifty workers chose the same Thursday morning to start their little rebellion told her this was an organised attack. She didn't really need to send her picked Aurors around to ask each and every one just what they thought they were doing and who put them up to it, but she did take some small pleasure in doing just that.
A couple of the workers had valid excuses. Their own work depended almost entirely on work done by others reaching them, people who were directly involved in the behaviour. A half-dozen more had been hit by charms or hexes that messed with their minds.
The rest? They were told just what a bad idea it was to carry on this way. At best, their actions could be considered industrial action except they made no demands, gave no warning and were refusing to do their jobs.
Labor laws in Wizarding Britain were a mess. While they favoured the employer almost universally, Purebloods, "Wizards and Witches in good standing," in legal parlance, could appeal to the Wizengamot any decision made against them except by another Pureblood.
While Amelia was a Halfblood by current definitions, she was also the sitting Minister of Magic and on her own authority could dismiss anyone from the Ministry. This authority was one of the items on the reform agenda but had to be left until later out of sheer pragmatism.
The Purebloods could appeal the decision but that would allow Amelia the chance to present her case. She could also delay the hearings for a 'reasonable' period for gathering evidence.
Somehow, she doubted any of the people on her list would enjoy the experience if they pushed her that far. Still, she also wondered if that public hearing was exactly the goal all along.
By holding the hearings before the Wizengamot, she would be in a forum where her opponents had some control. If they could translate that into publicly reversing one of her decisions, that would be a big step towards hobbling her power. The Wizengamot members liked to consider themselves above the petty tides of public opinion but they had forgotten the truth that, like her, they only had any power because they were allowed it.
One particularly pushy wizard just sneered at the Auror she sent, knowing that his connections were impeccable. "I have no intention of bowing down to your mistress. Go, run along, now." That was how he had dismissed her messenger. Amelia gave a cold smile.
"Bring me the records on MacNair," she told her aide.
A quick check confirmed what she knew of the wizard. A brutal man who had claimed to be 'under the Imperius', he was also friendly with the Dark families. That last wasn't a crime but it was certainly suspicious when her DMLE was still tracking Death Eater activity, when they weren't trying to locate the Dementors that had deserted en masse.
"Inform him that if he does not wish to work for the Ministry, he can always resign before he is fired for incompetence." Left unsaid was the matter of replacing the man. She was sure that the Clan would have some suggestions. By now, they had files on practically every wizard and witch in the country. It would make a great change to have competent people running the government, she was sure. Unfortunately, the changeover was expected to take the better part of two years to complete.
Amelia then moved onto the next matter on her desk. "Trouble with training..." she trailed off into silence as she read the reports, her eyes widening. Before she knew it, strong hands were massaging her tight shoulders and almost against her will, she relaxed in her private office, letting Harry help her to think straight again. The quick break over, she drove harder to clear her inbox.
It was a scene that was repeated in the Headmistress' office, Harry giving a massage to a woman in dire need of it.
Opening her eyes, Minerva gave him a grateful smile. "Thank you, Harry. That was just what I needed. I would never have believed clones could get muscle pains until I felt it for myself."
Harry's clone chuckled and nodded. "I know what you mean. It seems like such a useless way for the technique to mirror our original selves. Who in their right mind would want to feel tired, stressed and in pain multiple times over? Well, I know ninja would want that level of accuracy on missions but no one ever accused a ninja of being perfectly sane."
"Or a wizard." Minerva finished. "How lucky for me to be born a witch, instead."
He rolled his eyes. "You know, I would be concerned if I thought anyone really believed that rot."
"That is one problem we have been spared, I am glad to say. Dealing with a school full of children, including one who is more than old enough to know better, is problem enough!"
"How are the negotiations with Mr Slughorn then?"
"Slow. The man is a slug. Fat, slimy and very slow to move on anything without making sure to get the most benefit he can find, and always with a view to taking it back if he thinks he can get away with it. Still, the man knows his Potions and he knows his way around the old castle. I am afraid I am going to have to ask you to keep your eye on him, Harry. No doubt he will want to add you to his collection."
Harry shuddered. "A fat slimy man who wants to add a teenaged boy to his collection. Now that's not creepy at all, is it?"
Minerva glared at him. "Did you have to put it that way? I am already feeling uneasy about this decision, you know."
"But he beats Snape, right?"
"Indeed. He considers himself an enlightened wizard regarding blood purity, so I doubt he will give us much trouble on that score. However, he is an inveterate schemer, if he thinks there's something in it for him. He will want to use you for what he can get out of you."
Harry nodded. "Of course. And from his perspective, I am quite a prize. There is the Potter wealth, which I can't touch for a few years, the LPF's wealth, influence and connections, and the Potter Alliance in general including the Greengrass and Bones families, both of which interest him."
"Don't forget your fame and title, Harry."
"How can I? I wish I could burn every copy of those damned books!" He still hated the way some people venerated him instead of James and Lily Potter for whatever was done that night. The Lily Potter Foundation helped in that regard, but only to an extent.
"No, you may not." Minerva replied sternly, though her face broke into a smile at his put upon look. "Oh, enough, Harry. You will want to look your best for Diana, I am sure, and she will not want some broody teenager bemoaning his fate."
"No brooding. Yep, that is one of the few rules my parents laid down for me that I didn't understand for ages. It turns out they had no end of trouble from one brooding guy back home so they refused to let their children do the same." Harry tried to change the subject.
Minerva smiled wider. "Very sensible of them, let me tell you. For all James' many sins, no one could really accuse him of brooding. Severus, now, he always did brood when he wasn't busy sneering at everyone."
"That makes sense."
"Of course I make sense." she sniffed, "now how is Diana?"
"She is coping very well. Mark has been visiting her and..." he trailed off seeing the devious smile. "What?"
"Nothing for you to worry about, Harry. Why don't you come over and help me sort through these papers?" Minerva asked, conjuring another chair next to her and settling in for more dull work. While the real witch was off teaching classes, her clone was doing the homework for her other years after finishing off the small mountain of paperwork that came in this week alone for the new Headmistress.
Together, the pair worked efficiently side by side, allowing the witch to go patrolling the castle that night after an early nap, confident that all her work was up to date. She even caught the Weasley twins in the act, making potions to turn a lot of people into giant canaries for a minute or two. The fact that they were out of bounds and preparing for one of their big 'jokes' just made the victory all the sweeter.
She had set the pair to serve refreshments to the other three Houses before they got their wands back after dinner. The loss of points had never made them stop before so she was trying another tactic, one that horrified them to hear. Even if this punishment failed to curb their bad behaviour, it did provide entertainment and satisfaction to their would-be victims.
Her thoughts were cut off by a call from Amelia Bones, asking her if she could attend a meeting later.
Over tea, Amelia explained her problem to Minerva and to the Clan. "As you know, I have been doing my best to clear out the backlog of paperwork in my office ever since I took the job."
Minerva nodded. "I know just what you mean."
Amelia smiled briefly. "One of the things I found was that the training costs of new Aurors has been increasing ever since Riddle's Death Eaters started to make their mark on things. Partly it was as simple as the increased danger the trainees faced, but that didn't explain it all. There were jumps in cost that didn't match his activities so I dug deeper. Each jump followed around a year after a cut to the WEA budget. Something I found only after getting access to their old records."
"How did that affect Auror training costs?" Minerva wondered.
"The WEA budget cuts meant they couldn't do their jobs the same so they decided to adjust the OWL and NEWT exams each time, making them easier to administer without spending money they no longer had."
"That explains the notices in the Headmaster's Office about unspecified changes to the exams," Minerva mused.
"And why Auror training became more expensive." Ayame added. "The new exams weren't worth the same as the old ones so recruits got into the program who weren't up to par but their marks looked good."
"Exactly. And it has to stop. I have already looked to increase the WEA budget but that is no use if they can't administer the old exams, and they cannot without getting in more people."
"You could hire new people." Minerva replied.
"Or you could hire testers that only work for a few weeks either side of the exams." Ayame added. "These are people who would be competent to give the tests, make sure the students know what they're doing, but wouldn't be on the Ministry payroll full time."
"Wherever would we find such people?" Amelia wondered. "Without a steady job, who would take it?"
Harry spoke up at Ayame-mum's signal. "The Foundation is big enough that we could spare a number of people for that time. And if we are going to do it, why not do it right?"
"What do you mean, Harry?" Minerva asked.
"Well, thanks to the watered down exams, we don't know how good any of the students are compared to how we should be on the old ones. Plus, this would be a great chance to update the Muggle Studies exams to reflect the reality of the world rather than what it was like decades ago. That way, the students get a better education and the Ministry gets fewer Statute of Secrecy headaches from wizards like the ones at the World Cup with no idea how to dress correctly."
Harry was aware he didn't really need to convince either lady about the Muggle Studies course, but it was a reason they could use to reduce opposition to the changes. When they nodded, he continued.
"So we all take tests this year to see just how much each of us students knows. Start at the really basic stuff, then continue on in each subject until reach the end of our knowledge. Paint a true picture of where we are, and the teachers can adjust their courses to fill in whatever gaps have appeared over the decades."
"That will mean a lot more work than just administering the OWLs and NEWTs, Harry." Amelia warned.
"I know, but I am willing to donate the time of LPF employees to get it done. From a commercial standpoint, we will benefit in the longer term by having more effective employees who can do more and better work for the company. Some of that will go to higher salaries, of course, but even that comes back to us partly when they buy our products."
Ayame grinned. "Very good, Harry. It is unlikely to fully cover the costs soon, however."
"Of course not," Harry agreed, "but it will help fix Hogwarts, give the DMLE a break in costs and it will help our friends and allies. That's what the money is for: to be used on our goals."
"Rather Slytherin of you, Harry," Minerva opined.
"Nothing wrong with having ambition or cunning," Harry replied, "as long as you don't use it for hurting people."
"Amen." Amelia said, then smiled as Harry brought in some chocolate mousse for the pair. They sat down to thrash out some details as they enjoyed their calorie-free desserts.
The next day in Cranleigh, Jennifer was walking up to Harry's front door.
It had only been a day since Harry had decided to create the right time for her and the others, and he had set up a private date for just the two of them for Thursday evening. He hadn't told Jennifer his idea, however, wanting to make that part of the surprise and more importantly, to leave the decision in her hands rather than weighing her with expectations.
So Jennifer was unaware that her itch was going to be scratched after what she considered far too long. Instead, she was taking things into her own hands and making the approach herself. She knocked politely and put on a smile as she waited. Less than five seconds later, Harry answered the door.
"Jen?" he smiled at her. "Please, come in. I wasn't expecting you today. Aren't you doing that photo shoot in London?"
"They had to reschedule because the photographer was double-booked." Jennifer explained as she walked inside and threw her arms around him.
"My, someone is happy to see me." The young model purred as she felt him react.
"Always, Jennifer." He gave her a lopsided grin which changed a little as she ground against him. "Did you have anything special in mind?" Harry enquired as he picked her up, groaning as she jumped up and wrapped her legs around him, his hands firmly gripping her butt.
"You. Only you." With that, she kissed him soundly, moving against him as he kissed her back.
Harry decided to see if he could make this more memorable for the beautiful girl. Carrying her by the lovely handholds, he took her through the house and into her bedroom in 'their' wing of the Compound.
Opening the door with his foot, he carried her to the bed, still kissing and caressing. She stopped him when she was sitting on the covers, her delicate hands making a show of getting ready. She was in no hurry and by the time she was finished, Harry was breathless with her beauty and his desire for her.
Laying back, her green eyes shone with lust for him, too, and her long black hair made a halo for this goddess given form. The way she wanted him made him realise how crazy he had been to make them both wait. Harry couldn't wait any longer.
Jennifer knew then that she had made the right choice years ago to go after this god of a man.
Earlier that day, Diana had placed a call to ask for one of Harry's clones to drop by as soon as possible.
She had barely hung up the phone when she heard a knock at the front door where he was waiting, eyes scanning his environment for threats. "Harry!" She smiled and hugged him.
Harry's eyes widened at the change and hugged back automatically. "Where's the danger?" he asked, concerned but not yet worried.
"What danger? I asked you to visit because I was wanting company."
"Oh? Oh." Harry oh so intelligently replied. "Sorry, I thought that when you said as soon as possible that… well, never mind."
"Sorry, I meant to ask 'as soon as convenient'. I didn't mean to pull you away from anything important, Harry."
"You didn't, Diana, and you are important in your own right."
Diana was touched. "Thank you, Harry. I don't think anyone has really said that to me before. No one who didn't have to, at least."
"It's true." Harry assured her as he hugged her again. "And like I said, you didn't take me away from anything important. That's the great thing about the Shadow Clone technique. You can be where you're needed."
Relieved, Diana replied "I still need you here, Harry, so if you don't mind spending time with an older woman past her prime. . ."
"Sure. Where is she?" He grinned at her expression. "Trust me, Diana. You are still a beautiful lady." Harry almost blushed as she posed for him, her eyes wandering over him looking for a reaction. Whatever she was looking for, she found it because she guided him over to the lounge and sat next to him, closer than normal and looked at him for a long minute before breaking off.
Harry heard her mutter to herself, "Come on, you can do this," as she visibly took hold of her courage.
"Harry James Potter, I love you." There, she had said it, and she felt much better for getting it out there. "M- My feelings have been building for a while now. I- I don't expect you to love me the same way I do you, but I had to tell you. I-" she faltered and tears pricked at her eyes as she tried but failed to continue. Another calming breath and she made it. "I would like to explore if we have a future together. Please?"
Harry was grateful for his parents' training, putting it to good use to set her fears to rest. Harry gave her a gentle, friendly smile, one of his most practised expressions, and nodded. Matching her style of speech came easy to him, too, but most of all he was speaking the truth from the bottom of his heart. "I love you too, Diana, and I would like that, very much indeed."
Looking hopefully into his eyes, Diana searched for his sincerity. Taking the initiative, Harry took her hands in his and leaned in, giving her what felt like the best kiss of her life. It was her first kiss, she realized sometime later, after they came up for air. She had kissed her husband, many times, but he hadn't been the man she chose but one chosen for her by their families. This was the first time she kissed a man she chose for herself.
She had kissed him, over and over that day, as Harry stayed all day, preparing a meal just for her, and talking about anything and everything. Diana was still a little nervous about where it would all lead, but happier than at any other time in her life. In his touch, she found the love and fire that she had missed and while her body demanded she go further, her heart was content with holding and kissing the young man with the emerald eyes.
Just before she went to sleep, guarded by Harry outside her door, she told him that she had discussed her growing feelings for him with Minerva. In the morning, when his clones dispelled, Harry knew exactly why Minerva had looked like the cat that got the canary in their meeting.
Thank you for your support and feedback. Again, I give thanks to my betas Cloud Zen (FFN ID: 894440) and Daisy Duck for their hard work. Without them, this story would be the poorer.